


When Can We Meet Again?

by craftyuworks



Category: Living Dead Dolls
Genre: Demon/Human Relationships, Eventual Romance, Hell, M/M, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27223417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/craftyuworks/pseuds/craftyuworks
Summary: Lou Sapphire works at a special spot in Hell that deals with approving contracts. While most of his clients have no impact on him, he makes acquaintances with some.How come this one made him feel... different?
Relationships: Lou Sapphire/GreGORY (Living Dead Dolls)
Kudos: 1





	When Can We Meet Again?

**Author's Note:**

> I noticed the other stories in the tag were gone sadly and I didn't want to leave it empty so I decided to post this! It's very self indulgent but I hope you enjoy it! 
> 
> Slowish updates but I won't leave this hanging!

Lou Sapphire was manager of the contracts approval department _._ Any deals made between a human and a demon on paper were sent his way. His job was to speak with the client before approving the contract. 

Sure, they were hellish creatures who could con any foolish mortal souls they encountered for a quick soul but that wouldn’t be good for business. He would invite the demon and the human to his office, sit them down, and speak about the terms that must be agreed upon. Earlier this month, Lou spoke with a human, Sheena, about her desire to be a well known rock star. She agreed to bind her soul to Hell once she passed in exchange for fame. She died later that week from an accident at one of her own shows. The pesky fine print warned her of this but she didn’t bother to read it. 

That was always the one thing Lou left out in his conversations. He would read out everything that was seen upfront but left it to the mortal to read in between the lines. It’s always more fun that way. 

Today his associate, Nicholas, knocked at his door. “Come in,” Lou spoke, his eyes focused on the stack of papers on his desk. The door opened and in came the sound of footsteps. The demon sat at one of the two chairs that faced Lou’s desk. The seat to the right of him was taken by the client. 

The demon before him removed his almost comical devil’s mask, revealing his yellow painted face. He held the mask in one hand as he reached his other hand up. He snapped, causing a small fire to pose midair before revealing the contract. “For you,” he said, leaning with the papers in his grip towards the desk. Lou finally looked up, grabbing the documents from Nicholas and catching a glance at the client. He looked like every other person who wanted to make a deal; simple and ordinary. He had short curly black hair, a pale face, and a fitted black suit with a white shirt and gray cummerbund. 

Lou put the papers on his desk and looked to the man. 

“Lou Sapphire. Pleasure to meet you,” he spoke his usual scripted introduction. The man before him seemed to smile nervously. “Gregory,” he responded. Lou looked back down at the papers and began reading. “You’re looking to become famous, it says. That’s quite a common wish. What’s your field?” 

“I-I’m in entertainment,” he stated, as he reached for a fairly large black box Lou had yet to notice was sitting by his chair. He pulled the box to his lap, his shaky hand beginning to unlatch it. “Entertainment, eh? Do you play an instrument? That wouldn’t be a first either,” he scoffed. Gregory opened the lid, letting a creak escape from its hinges. “Actually,” he started as he reached into the box, “I’m a ventriloquist.” He had pulled a large wooden puppet from the box. Lou stared. “Well that’s new.”

Gregory smiled nervously, his eyes darting from the dummy and to him. Lou leaned back in his seat. “So, you want to make a deal for fame? We can do that.” His gaze shifted to his colleague. “What are the terms that were agreed on?”

Nicholas cleared his throat. “Our client is granted fame in exchange for his soul being bound to Hell for the rest of eternity once he is deceased.” Lou filled out the blanks on the contract. He lifted the paper to read away at the hidden terms. His eyes traced over every word until he paused. “Nicholas, I need to see you outside for a moment. His colleague furrowed his brows in concern but stood up. Lou had approached the door and opened it, letting the other demon out first. Gregory stared in confusion as he remained. 

“Item possession? That’s your big plan?”

Nicholas crossed his arms, “Yeah, why?”

“Last time you cursed something for a deal it all went haywire.”

“I’ve got it under control this time.”

“Listen, smart ass, you’ve said that the last two times. Cursing that doll will end us up in the same shit as last time. I’m not about to have Satan on my ass again because of you.”

“Look, I’ll curse the doll to give it more, I don’t know, personality maybe? It’ll make him into the perfect entertainer. He won’t even have to do a damn thing. He just takes out the puppet, sticks his hand in it, and boom! The thing takes over his mind during shows, making him irresistibly charismatic and enjoyable to his audience.” 

Lou leaned his back against the closed office door. “What’s with this guy anyways? Is he terrible or just ordinary?”

“Well, he’s good at what he does I guess but he’s pretty dry with his acts. He doesn’t branch out or do anything risky.” 

Lou sighed. He knew this was going to end badly. Maybe this time he wouldn’t get chewed out. After all, this _is_ technically in the fine print. “Fine,” he gave in, opening the door again. He pushed past Nicholas and sat at his seat. Gregory focused on him again. He had already packed away the puppet. 

“Alright. Gregory, was it? Have you read over the terms?”

“Yes.”

“And do you understand your half of the fulfillment in this process?”

“Yes.”

“Good, just sign at the bottom and we’ll start the process.” Lou attached the contract to a clipboard from his desk and passed it to the man ahead of him along with a black inked pen from his other hand. Gregory took the board from him and grabbed the pen with his left hand. He glanced through the writing quickly before signing his name. He passed the document back to him. Lou looked once more before opening one of the shallow drawers in his desk. He pulled out a small red ink pad and a stamp. He dipped the block in the crimson and marked the paper. “Approved,” was read in big letters. 

Lou looked at the stack, staring at the mark. Suddenly it was plucked away from his sight. Nicholas had the contract in his grasp.

“Well then. We’ll be on our way. Thanks Saph.” He turned to the client. “C’mon.”

Gregory stood with the black case in his hand. He headed for the door after Nicholas. The demon turned around to Lou one last time. 

_“Don’t fuck it up,”_ Lou mouthed at him. Nicholas gave him a thumbs up and an annoyed smile. The door closed. Lou sighed. 

  
  
  


_“Sapphire, my office. /CLICK/”_

“Dammit,” Lou hissed.

He got up from his chair and to the door of his office. He exited and locked it shut. He passed through the slightly bigger space that contained his and another office. He stepped out into the long dark hallways and took a right. The sound of his shoes echoed as he made his way across the building. 

He stopped at the large ornamented door in front of him. He let out a deep breath as his hand made its way to the buzzer. A few seconds passed as the entrance opened slowly. Lou walked in and saw his boss at the very end of the long room. As he approached him, he saw a familiar face already seated in front of him. He took the other chair. 

“Judging by your look, I assume you know why you’re here.”

Lou nodded. 

“Good,” the devil leaned back in his chair. “Now, Nicholas, you cursed that puppet two months ago Mortal Time, correct?” The demon nodded. “Yes, I did- with the permission of Lou of course-”

“Jackass-”

“And you said you would have it under control this time?” their boss continued. Nick nodded. “In my defense… it worked out for a lot longer than last time.”

“The point is that your client was _murdered_ by it. The agreement said his soul would be bound after he died of a _heart attack_ in ten years _._ This is the third time you’ve violated contract.”

“Well, y-yes, but-”

“What’s your excuse this time?”

“-Sir, if you don’t mind me asking, why am I here?” Lou intervened. Satan looked at him. “You approved the contract, correct? You knew he would curse the item?”

“Yes.”

“For you, this is your last warning. Approve another faulty contract and your ass is out of the office, clear?”

“Yes,” he bit back at any insult that came to mind.

“As for you, Nicholas, you’re out of commission. You’ll be stationed at the direct hotline now.”

“What?! Come on, I’ll get it right next time.”  
His boss pointed at the door. Rather than protest any further, he stood up. He left hastily while Lou stood slowly. “This won’t happen again, Boss.” This earned him no reaction. He headed out. 

  
  
  


“What did I tell you?” 

“Cram it.”

Lou walked with Nicholas. It was just about time for their break so they started for the bar. “Dammit, I thought I had it under control this time! That shitty doll!” he slammed his fist against the stone wall that outlined the hallway. “What happened anyways?” 

Nick’s gaze was focused ahead of him as rage filled him. “That stupid puppet gained full sentience.” 

“What the hell?! How?”

“Beats me, but it sawed that guy’s fuckin’ hand off and took full control or some shit like that.”

They continued in silence. Suddenly Nick stopped in the middle of walking. “Shit.”

Lou looked back at him. “What?” 

“Well, his soul’s bound here now. That means I’m gonna have to deal with _another_ person nagging at me for ‘not being fair’ with the contract.” Lou rolled his eyes at him before smacking him against the head. “And who’s fault is that?”

Nick hissed at him. “Shut up, I know it’s my fault. I just figured I had it all under wraps by now.”

“Give it a rest, Nick. You need to go back to the academy and retake your possession course if you want another chance at working deals again.” He earned a groan in response. By now they reached the bar so the two entered. “Just think about it,” Lou spoke before splitting away to the counter. As he drew nearer, he noticed a familiar face and decided to join.

“We meet again,” he spoke through a smug smile. 

“What’s up, asshole?” the woman spoke. She was one of his earlier clients, the rockstar. Sheena and Lou were on good terms after she was sent to hell. The two became drinking buddies and would discuss during his break. 

“I was real close to losing my job today,” he grumbled, motioning at the bartender for his usual. Sheena raised an eyebrow as she sipped her beer. “What’d you do?”

“It was Nick’s fault. That dumbass broke the deal so he’s out of commission now. I still got heat for it too.” He thanked the bartender for the drink as he took a swig. “Sounds like him,” she responded. “So what happened?”

“He tried cursing shit again. I told him it wouldn’t work. Next thing we know, the damn thing killed the client.” Sheena paused, “Wait, you’re not talking about the new guy are you? Cursed puppet ‘n shit?” Lou furrowed his brows. “How’d you know?” 

“Met him earlier. He seems like a nice guy. Didn’t seem too happy though.” 

Lou scratched the side of his face. “Yeah. He had ten more years on him.” Sheena nearly spat her drink. “Seriously? No wonder. I bet it was a bummer finding that out.” Lou nodded. “Yeah.” 

“You wanna meet up with him? Well, I know you already met him, but maybe get to know him better. We’re going to that little music shop later, care to join?”

The demon chuckled, “I doubt he’d wanna see the guy who helped seal his early fate. I’ll pass.” She rolled her eyes at him. “Your loss. Besides, the least you should do is talk to him about what happened.” Lou snickered, "Yeah, whatever. Screw ups happen from time to time. I never usually run into them after that." He took another sip. 

“That’s why you should talk to him.”  
Lou sighed, “You’re not gonna stop, are you?” She shook her head. “Since when have you become so soft?” Sheena scoffed, “I haven't gone soft, I just think he’s a neat guy who deserves an explanation. Plus he likes a lot of the same bands I do.”  
“That explains a lot.” Sheena punched his arm playfully, “You know it does. And I’m expecting you to show tonight.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll see you there.” Lou glanced at the clock that hung by the entrance of the indoor bar. “My break’s gonna end soon, I’ll talk later.” He stood from the counter. “Put it on my tab, would you Dottie?” he asked the bartender. She nodded as he exited. 

He ventured down the same black hallway as earlier, not bothering to pay much attention to his path as he knew the area like the back of his hand. As he picked up his pace, his focus began to dwindle from the floor and to the window, letting his eyes admire the swarm of slim, decaying trees. 

His trip to his office was disturbed when he collided with an on comer, causing the two to stumble to the floor. “Shit,” he cursed, lifting himself upright. Before he released another string of swears, he looked ahead of him to see who he ran into.

The man had quite the familiar face. 

“...Gregory?” 

He, too, sat up and stared back. “Wait, you’re… shit- I’m sorry, I should've been paying attention,” he spoke frantically. He stood quickly before reaching his left hand out to pull Lou to his feet. “It’s fine. I wasn’t too focused either,” he spoke, almost cautious with his words. He denied his hand and stood by himself. He did however reach for the same black suitcase he had seen prior from the floor. He held it out for him. “Thanks,” the man said before taking it. 

He seemed different from their first meeting. Gregory now had dark circles around his eyes and the hand he once held the puppet in was gone. Before he could get another word in, he was on his way with the case. Lou stood, watching as he left. He pulled his eyes away and carried on. 


End file.
